7 Tips to Pack for your Next Family Vacation
To say we overpacked on our first family vacation would be an understatement. I wanted to be prepared for every single scenario that could possibly happen. We packed two outfits per day, more diapers than we could have ever used, we packed towels, a baby bathtub, toys, food, extra snacks, and extra shoes. You name it and we packed it. The interesting thing about growing as a family is that you learn pretty quickly what you need and that less is more. The more stuff you bring, the more you have to keep track of and deal with, and most of the stuff we brought, we didn’t even use. You can get by for a week or two with what you have and learn to adapt.
Packing lists are going to have so many variables. It will be location dependent and transportation dependent. The type of vacation you are going on, i.e., mountains, beach, resort, rental, ski trip, amusement park, will definitely have an impact on how you pack. This list is my best compilation of tips to think about as you go about packing for any family vacation.
Determine What is Available At Your Location
Are you staying in a hotel or a rental? Are linens and toiletries included? Is there laundry available? Are there grocery stores and other essential stores nearby? Having an answer to all of these questions will also help guide your list. If I am traveling to a resort without access to a store, I try to pack our diapers so that it is one less thing I need to worry about. I also look into grocery delivery services. When we went to Disneyworld, I did a grocery delivery service that delivered all the essentials we needed for the week. This saved us space in our suitcase for more essential items. I also packed just enough food to make our lunches for the first day at the parks and enough diapers to get us through the first two days. Alternatively, during our annual trip to Cape Cod, we drive and always make a trip to the grocery store on the first day.
Identify Your Mode of Transportation
Your packing list will vary based on how you are arriving at your destination. If you are flying, you will want to travel with much less. Having too many suitcases to check or carry on while keeping track of the kids can get overwhelming. If you are driving, you will have much more flexibility on what and how much you can bring.
Make a Packing List
There are tons of resources online for premade packing lists. These are great as a starter that you can easily make your own. I like to keep everything on Google Sheets and save them based on the type of vacation (e.g. beach, camping or skiing) so I can refer back to it year after year and adjust as needed.
Keep Organized
I love packing cubes. I honestly didn’t understand the hype for so long. It felt like another completely unnecessary expense. As I was preparing for our first flight as a family of five, I finally ordered some packing cubes to see if it would actually help. I wanted to fit everything into as few suitcases as possible so that I could avoid paying for additional baggage. I used them as a way to keep our clothes more organized and quickly realized what all the fuss was about. Not only do they keep you organized, but they somehow add more space to your suitcase. I was able to fit everything I needed and keep everyone organized by color coordinating per person.
Another way we keep organized is laying out everything you need to pack and determining where it needs to go in the suitcase. If you are arriving late or close to bedtime, don’t pack pajamas at the bottom of the suitcase. If you are arriving early and plan to swim right away make sure swimsuits are easily accessible.
Do Not Overpack
As a frequent overpacker, I completely understand how hard this one is to achieve! I have really learned to scale back over the years though. I think it mainly comes from packing for a family of five. It is one thing to overpack when it is only you, but multiply that overpacking by five and you will quickly learn that you need to travel with less. Think about what you can live without for a week or two, is everything you are bringing completely necessary or can you make do without it while on vacation? Is laundry available where you are going? If so, you don’t need to pack clothes for every day of your trip. Save space, by doing laundry halfway through to rewear your clothes.
When traveling with kids I used to bring so many toys from home. It was as if I was afraid they would be completely bored on vacation that we wouldn’t know what to do. I don’t think my kids ever touched a single toy that we packed on any of our trips. Kids get so excited being in a new place whether it is a hotel room or a rental. There is so much for them to explore that they will be more than occupied. Let them pick out one small toy to bring and a stuffed animal if you have too.
Bring Comforts From Home
You will want to balance this with the aforementioned do not overpack rule. Determine what comforts from home will add value to your vacation versus what will add more unnecessary luggage. This will also vary based on your method of travel. You will want to pack lighter if you are flying. If you are driving, there is much more flexibility in what you can take along. We all sleep with sound machines, so I try to take them with us to recreate that sleeping environment for everyone. If you are limited on space you can also do this with apps on your phone, which we will sometimes do if we don’t want the additional stuff or are doing a shorter trip with everyone in the same hotel room.
When we are staying in a house rental we always end up doing a pizza night since we love to make our own pizzas. After several years of buying pizza pans on every trip, I finally learned to pack these as well .
Let the Kids Help
Lastly, get the kids involved. Packing gets everyone excited for your upcoming vacation. Letting kids help will make them feel included in the experience and also teach them some of those valuable lessons such as “do not overpack.” If your kids are anything like mine they also want to bring everything. My oldest son loves to sleep with 25 things in his bed. In the early days I would pack up everything from his bed. As he got older, we learned that he will easily adapt to only sleeping with those 2-3 things. By letting him choose what to bring, the expectations are set and he is comfortable sleeping in a new place with the things he brought along. I also give each of my kids a small backpack that they can fill. The packs are small enough for them to carry and they cannot fit too many things inside.
